No, that wasn't drool on his lips, Rep. Joe Kennedy says

by The Associated Press

In this still image taken from video, Rep. Joe Kennedy III delivers the Democratic response to President Donald Trump's State of the Union, at Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School in Fall River, Mass., Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018. Kennedy, 37, a three-term congressman and grandson of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, outlined a Democratic vision that he said promises a "better deal for all who call this country home." (US NETWORK via AP, Pool)

WASHINGTON (AP) — No, that wasn't drool on the lips of Massachusetts Rep. Joe Kennedy III. He says it was ChapStick.

Twitter lit up with jibes about the 37-year-old Democrat's response to President Donald Trump's State of the Union. In his televised speech Tuesday, Kennedy's lips appeared wet and glistening, leading to tweets about Kennedy's "drool."

Kennedy joked on ABC's "Good Morning America" Wednesday that he "decided to go a little bit light on the ChapStick this morning ... which is probably a wise choice." He told CNN that Tuesday's ChapStick was "a little too much, apparently."

Other State of the Union responders have attracted similar unwanted attention. In 2013, GOP Sen. Marco Rubio's response to President Barack Obama's speech was mocked for Rubio's awkward off-screen reach for water.